There was a lot of hoopla surrounding the controversial suggestion that obesity is "socially contagious" made by Harvard and University of California, San Diego researchers earlier this year. According to this earlier study, if someone’s friend becomes obese, for example, that individual’s chances of becoming obese went up by 57% percent. Among mutual friends, the effect increased up to 171%. The study was the first of it’s kind, and appeared to show a strong correlation between our friend’s waistlines and what we personally find to be a socially acceptable size. But what if fat wasn’t just “socially” contagious in the...